Former Bachmann Aide Arrested, Charged With Theft

A former legislative aide to Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., was arrested July 11 and has been charged in connection to a rash of burglaries in a congressional office building on Capitol Hill.

Javier Manuel Sanchez, who was the congresswoman’s senior legislative assistant at the time of the alleged burglaries, has been charged with second degree theft, according to the U.S. Capitol police.

“Earlier this year the United States Capitol Police (USCP) was apprised of thefts that occurred in the Rayburn House Office Building. The USCP conducted an investigation and were able to identify a subject. The investigation resulted in the arrest of 37 year old Javier Sanchez of Virginia,” Shennell Antrobus, USPC public information officer, wrote in a statement Monday night.

Antrobus declined to specify what Sanchez allegedly stole, but burglaries in congressional offices are not uncommon.

Sanchez was arraigned July 12 and pleaded not guilty. He also asserted his right to a trial, according to documents filed in D.C. Superior Court.

He has hired criminal attorney David Benowitz to defend him against the misdemeanor charge. An initial status hearing has been scheduled Aug. 26 in D.C. Superior Court. Judge Juliet McKenna will preside over the case.

Bachmann spokesman Dan Kotman said Sanchez “is no longer with the office.”

“Any further questions should be directed to Capitol Police,” he said.

Sanchez previously was a legislative assistant for North Carolina Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx, and began working for Bachmann early this year.